With a ban on caravan parks being enforced while hotels and backpackers remain open for business, many in the industry are feeling unfairly targeted during the government's COVID-19 crackdown. Changes to the Public Health Act were put into legislation by health minister Brad Hazzard this week, closing caravan parks and camping grounds to the public with permanent residents, their visitors and residents with nowhere else to go allowed to remain. The Caravan Industry Association of Australia is lobbying the state government to review the law changes, which has left suitable self-contained cabin accommodation sitting empty, CEO Stuart Lamont said. "We support the need for swift action, but in the haste, public policy has not accounted for the unique and diverse accommodation options available within caravan parks," Mr Lamont said. "Caravan parks are generally spacious gated communities within nature, where you can park directly alongside your cabin - they are ideal for self-isolation." Tathra Chamber of Commerce president Carmen Risby has been forced to close her Tathra Beachside park and stand down all her staff, and said the decision is a "real sore point". "Caravan parks were put into a separate category to hotels and motels, and other accommodation," she said. "We cannot officially take essential guests, such as workers, even though we have private, self-contained cabins. "They have no communal corridors or lifts, and have private parking at the door. As a caravan park we can only take those with no current home." While other forms of accommodation remain open, a Bondi backpackers is being blamed for triggering a COVID-19 cluster outbreak, infecting an unknown number of people. "I'm saying to the community that if we're not convinced we've had a sufficient amount of success, NSW will have to take further action and that's a position I've been clear on from day one," NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian said before the shutdown. Ms Risby said units are cleaned and sanitised, staff have lost their jobs for no reason, and the law is lacking in "common sense". "High-rise hotels with hundreds of people using underground communal car parks, lifts and corridors remain open, but our self contained units can't take doctors nurses and police," she said. "Perhaps when the time comes that our essential frontline services suffer as a result, the NSW government may re consider. We can only hope that common sense will prevail." Mr Lamont said parks also offer space for motorhomes and caravans, without the need to share common amenities. "There are estimated nearly 80,000 caravanners on the road across Australia right now and through closing caravan parks these people will be forced to find public places to park their vans and unreasonably travel from place to place, with no way of knowing where they've come from, where they're going or who they've been in contact with," he said. "This is completely contrary to the health objectives that governments are trying to achieve." "There's also a strange contradiction occurring with state governments - we've seen a surge in demand from departments making cabin bookings for patients, staff and clients while the very same agencies are trying to shut us down." READ MORE

Banned industry says it can help government during COVID-19 pandemic

NEW LAWS: The caravan park industry said it feels unfairly targeted during the government's COVID-19 crackdown. Picture: Alasdair McDonald

With a ban on caravan parks being enforced while hotels and backpackers remain open for business, many in the industry are feeling unfairly targeted during the government's COVID-19 crackdown.

Changes to the Public Health Act were put into legislation by health minister Brad Hazzard this week, closing caravan parks and camping grounds to the public with permanent residents, their visitors and residents with nowhere else to go allowed to remain.

The Caravan Industry Association of Australia is lobbying the state government to review the law changes, which has left suitable self-contained cabin accommodation sitting empty, CEO Stuart Lamont said.

"We support the need for swift action, but in the haste, public policy has not accounted for the unique and diverse accommodation options available within caravan parks," Mr Lamont said.

"Caravan parks are generally spacious gated communities within nature, where you can park directly alongside your cabin - they are ideal for self-isolation."

Tathra Chamber of Commerce president Carmen Risby has been forced to close her Tathra Beachside park and stand down all her staff, and said the decision is a "real sore point".

"Caravan parks were put into a separate category to hotels and motels, and other accommodation," she said.

"We cannot officially take essential guests, such as workers, even though we have private, self-contained cabins.

"They have no communal corridors or lifts, and have private parking at the door. As a caravan park we can only take those with no current home."

While other forms of accommodation remain open, a Bondi backpackers is being blamed for triggering a COVID-19 cluster outbreak, infecting an unknown number of people.

"I'm saying to the community that if we're not convinced we've had a sufficient amount of success, NSW will have to take further action and that's a position I've been clear on from day one," NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian said before the shutdown.

Ms Risby said units are cleaned and sanitised, staff have lost their jobs for no reason, and the law is lacking in "common sense".

"High-rise hotels with hundreds of people using underground communal car parks, lifts and corridors remain open, but our self contained units can't take doctors nurses and police," she said.

"Perhaps when the time comes that our essential frontline services suffer as a result, the NSW government may re consider. We can only hope that common sense will prevail."

Mr Lamont said parks also offer space for motorhomes and caravans, without the need to share common amenities.

"There are estimated nearly 80,000 caravanners on the road across Australia right now and through closing caravan parks these people will be forced to find public places to park their vans and unreasonably travel from place to place, with no way of knowing where they've come from, where they're going or who they've been in contact with," he said.

"This is completely contrary to the health objectives that governments are trying to achieve."

"There's also a strange contradiction occurring with state governments - we've seen a surge in demand from departments making cabin bookings for patients, staff and clients while the very same agencies are trying to shut us down."